


Like It's Only You And Me

by SJtrinity



Category: The Pacific (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Injury, M/M, inspired by a song, songfic?, typical cast of characters but they're all in the background, what is a songfic?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:13:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23837374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SJtrinity/pseuds/SJtrinity
Summary: This is entirely unoriginal. The framing scene is straight from the dialogue portion of the song 'Home' by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. What can I say, it gave me an idea and I went with it.
Relationships: Merriell "Snafu" Shelton/Eugene Sledge, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 30





	Like It's Only You And Me

**Author's Note:**

> This is entirely unoriginal. The framing scene is straight from the dialogue portion of the song 'Home' by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. What can I say, it gave me an idea and I went with it.

When Snafu fell backwards out of Eugene's second story window, Eugene knew he was in trouble.  
Not Snafu, although he was obviously in trouble too, he had just fallen out of a window after all. His arms pinwheeled, his drink went flying, hit the wall and, inconceivably, didn't shatter. Then he was gone, nose over tail. But Eugene was the one in trouble.  
It wasn't the way his heart seized in his chest; he would have been horrified to see anyone fall out of his window. Jesus. No, it was how Eugene found himself jumping out the window after him, like he was some sort of action hero, like he was somehow going to reach the ground before Snafu and, what? Catch him? But he hadn't thought, had just reacted. And now here he was, jumping out of a second story window.  
His feet hit the ground with a heavy thunk that reverberated up his legs at the same time that someone on the porch screamed. Eugene scarcely heard her. He staggered the few feet over to where Snafu was lying on the concrete and dropped down beside him.   
"Snaf," he said, hands fluttering uselessly over him, eventually settling on his arms. "My God, can you move? Don't move. Can you hear me?" Snafu just stared at him, wide-eyed. He was low-lit by the porch light and the street lamps, all bronze and gray shadows. "Are you bleeding, are you hurt?" He put a careful hand to the side of Snafu's head, vaguely aware of the shouts and raised voices coming from the house behind him. His fingers came away wet. "Oh, shit, you're bleeding. You're bleeding, Snafu, don't move, okay?"  
"It's December," Snafu said.  
"Yeah, it is," Eugene didn't know what the hell that had to do with anything, but at least he was speaking.  
"Why the fuck you got your window open?" His words were slurry, but his outrage came through nice and clear.  
"What'd you do now, Eugene," Sid said from behind him. Eugene looked up, his breath punching out of him with relief.  
"What should we do? Should I call an ambulance?" Sid didn't answer right away, moving around him to kneel on Snafu's other side.  
"Don't call a fucking ambulance," Snafu said. A crowd was starting to gather around them now.  
"Is he dead?" Eugene heard one girl ask, high and panicky. He hoped he hadn't sounded like that. "I saw his body hit the ground."  
"Alright, back up, back up, make some space." Bill shouldered his way through and stood over Snafu, swaying. "Are you drunk? Why're you laying on the sidewalk?"  
"He fell out of my window, Bill." God, he did sound shaky. Eugene grabbed Snafu's hand.  
"Call an ambulance," Bill said.   
"Don't call an ambulance," Snafu said.  
"We really should call one, Snafu." Sid, thankfully, didn't sound drunk at all. He laid his fingers along the inside of Snafu's other wrist and looked at his watch.  
"I'm fucking fine. Landed on my ass, that's what hurts." Snafu, to Eugene's horror, started to roll over.  
"Snaf, don't," he said, starting to tug on his hand to stop the motion, and then thinking better of it. He let go instead.  
"Stop it, you idiot." Sid sounded a little horrified too. "Don't matter what end you landed on, it's still your damn spine." He put a restraining hand on Snafu's arm, but Snafu shrugged him off.   
"Oh, hey, you're really bleeding," Bill said, getting a look at the back of Snafu's head. He turned around. "Jay! Hey, you with the legs. Tell Jay and Flo we need some towels and shit out here. What the hell are you all staring at, anyways? Back it up." Snafu, meanwhile, was slowly climbing to his feet, ignoring Sid's frustrated commands to stay still.   
"Shit, my ass fucking hurts," he said once he was upright, Eugene and Sid hovering on either side of him. He reached a hand behind him and touched the base of his spine, then jerked it away with a hiss. His other hand went to the back of his head, he started listing to the side, and Eugene stepped in and wound his arm around his waist. Snafu leaned against him, turned to look at him, his nose nearly brushing Eugene's jaw. His eyes were gray under the dim lighting, and fixed on him. "Eugene," he said, that low drawl of his that sometimes seemed to curl its way through Eugene's chest. "Am I gonna die?"  
Something about the question, Snafu giving in to his more-than-occasional habit of over-dramatizing a situation, settled Eugene, had his heart slowing a bit in his chest. "You ain't dying, Mer," he said firmly, pulling Snafu in a little closer. They were nearly the same height, and Eugene wasn't big by any definition, but sometimes Snafu felt so fucking small, fragile even. Snafu blinked slowly at him, and Eugene realized what'd he'd called him.  
It wasn't the first time he'd called him by his name, but it was still a rare thing, and Eugene had certainly never called him anything but Snafu in front of their friends. No, calling him by his name was reserved for when they were alone, for the moments when something in Snafu softened, when he seemed to melt against Eugene, laying his head against his chest, lingering in bed with him. Eugene looked away, flustered, looked at Sid.  
"You're not dying," Sid was saying to Snafu, who was still staring at Eugene. "But you could be making a bad injury worse. You're bleeding all over the damn place, Snafu. And you probably fractured your coccyx besides."  
"Huh?" Snafu said, turning to look at Sid.  
"You've busted your ass," Bill supplied helpfully. "Literally."  
The look of dismay on Snafu's face would have been comical if Eugene had felt like laughing. "I mess my ass up, am I gonna be able to control my shits?"  
"Depends on whether or not you damaged your spinal cord," Sid said flatly. He kept a cool front, but Eugene could tell he was enjoying rattling Snafu, whose gaze swung back to Eugene. He reached out and grabbed Eugene by his elbow. He didn't speak, but the plea was clear to see in his eyes, in the squeezing grip of his hand.  
"Sid, get the car," Eugene said, not looking away from Snafu.

* * *

  
Sometimes it seemed like fate, meeting Snafu, but Eugene knew he spent too much time working himself into existential corners thinking about what in life was chance or choice, or bound to be. However he looked at it, he figured it was safe to say it all started with him taking two years to himself between high school and college. If he had enrolled right away, he might not have chosen the university that he did, seeing as he ultimately chose it because Sid was already going there. If he hadn't started the year that he had, he probably wouldn't have met Florence the way he did, and if not for Florence he wouldn't have gotten to know Burgie, and Burgie was the one who introduced him to Snafu.  
But viewing it that way was like looking at only the corner of a picture, because it didn't account for Snafu's side of the story, but Eugene couldn't factor in what he didn't know. He'd known the man for two years and still didn't know how he'd ended up in the same Midwestern city as Eugene. It wasn't for college; Snafu worked two different jobs and sold pieces on the side and was openly disdainful of college life in general, despite making the majority of his money off the students and professors that bought his work and tipped generously, no matter how ornery his attitude.  
That was where Eugene had met Florence, at E.J.'s, the cafe where both Snafu and Burgie worked. Eugene was only a month into his first semester, but he was already a regular. It didn't make him special; everybody loved E.J.'s. Sid had taken him there as soon as they had unpacked, assuring him it was the only place in the city to serve up authentic Southern cooking. Eugene was hooked right away. It wasn't just the food, although that would have been enough. It was the whole place, the scarred wooden tables, the colorful chairs and mismatched cups. Music was always drifting through the air, eclectic and unpredictable. The food was affordable and the helpings were large, and Eugene soon found himself eating there more days than he didn't.  
He had waited in line for over an hour one Saturday morning, passing the time reading and people watching. He finally got a table, had just sat down and pulled out a textbook, when someone dropped into the seat across from him. Eugene looked up, startled. A girl was sitting there, giving him a hopeful grin.  
"Please let's be table mates," she said in a broad Australian accent. "The wait is so long, and his shift is over in an hour."  
"What?" Eugene asked blankly.  
"The bloke I got my eye on." She gestured behind them, but there were several waiters moving between the tables, and Eugene couldn't pick out which one she meant. "I'm good company, I promise." She eyed his textbook. "Or I can be quiet. Whichever you like."  
Eugene glanced around the cafe, hoping to spot another table to direct her to, but he could see why she chose him. He was the only one sitting alone. He didn't feel the discomfort so many people seemed to experience at the prospect of eating alone, not after a full year spent traveling by himself, doing everything alone. He'd come to enjoy solitude, being lost in a crowd. But it apparently made him an easy target for circumstances like the one he found himself in now. "How do you know this is one of his tables?"  
"That's part of what I'm trying to figure," she said, leaning forward. "Every time I come, he gets my table, no matter where I sit. Reckon I might have a shot, you know?" Eugene hummed under his breath, stalling for time, racking his head for a polite way to get rid of her. But then a waiter approached their table and the girl turned towards him with a wide, beaming smile, and Eugene had to admit he didn't have the heart for it.  
"Morning," the man said. He smiled genially at Eugene, then turned his gaze towards the girl. She definitely had a shot, anyone with eyes could see that. "Beignet and black coffee, Florence?"  
"Lovely," she said, staring up at him. His lip twitched up and he nodded at her before turning back to Eugene.  
"Grits with eggs and bacon, ain't that right?"   
"And a coffee, please. Thank you." The waiter smiled again at Florence and walked away, and she slumped back in her seat.  
"He remembered your order, too," she said glumly.  
"Just means he's good at his job." Eugene put his textbook away with an inner sigh. "You should ask him out. He likes you."  
"You think?" Florence looked down at the table, but it was fairly obvious she was trying to watch the waiter out of the corner of her eye as he moved through the room.  
"I do." Eugene hesitated, feeling awkward, then went ahead and said it. "His eyes got all soft and warm when he looked at you." Florence looked up at him in surprise. Eugene dropped his gaze, embarrassed, as a delighted smile spread across her face.  
"Why, you're a sweet one," she said. She drummed her fingers along the table, then stuck her hand out. "I'm Florence."  
"Eugene." He shook her hand, but quickly dropped it and settled back in his seat. "He's coming with the coffee."  
"Made sure Eddie brewed it extra strong for you," the waiter said as he dropped two mugs onto the table and started to pour. He looked over at Eugene. "Hope that's alright with you."  
"That's fine, thank you," Eugene said. He kicked his foot out lightly, managed to connect with Florence's shin.  
"Would you like to grab a coffee with me when you get off?" Florence asked. She and the waiter both glanced down at the mug he had just slid over to her, and she flushed. "Another coffee, I mean. Or something else."  
"I can't," the waiter said. "I'm meeting up with friends this afternoon to study. But I'm free this evening. Could take you out to dinner."  
"Yes," Florence said. Eugene focused on his mug and keeping his lips pressed flat.  
"Six o'clock? We could meet here."  
"Yes," she said again.  
"Great," the waiter said. "That's great." Eugene snuck a glance up at him, he was grinning with his whole face. He caught Eugene looking, tried unsuccessfully to rein it in. "Looking forward to it." He walked off, and Florence turned back to Eugene with a dazed expression.  
By the time Eugene left the restaurant, he and Florence had exchanged numbers and agreed to meet for breakfast the following weekend. She and Burgie, the waiter, spent the rest of the meal grinning stupidly at each other as he came and went from their table. Eugene didn't mind. Being a third wheel was another thing that he had never felt the sting of.  
Burgie and Florence adopted him, that was the only word for it. Eugene didn't even know it was happening until it was a done thing. Somewhere along the way Sid got folded into the mix as well, and in no time at all Eugene found himself surprisingly overwhelmed with both friends and coursework. Just when the constant upheaval started to feel normal, just when he found himself enjoying the teetering line he was walking between diligent focus and careless nights spent out with friends, it ended. His exams were over, he and Sid were both due home by the end of the week. They made plans with Burgie to hang out one last time before they parted ways for the holidays; Florence had already flown home to Melbourne. Sid and Eugene swung by E.J.'s to pick Burgie up. The cafe was closed, but Burgie unlocked the doors and let them in.  
"Just give me ten minutes and I'll be ready to go." He was mopping the floors, and Eugene could hear the sound of clattering dishes coming from the kitchen.   
"You need a hand?" He asked.  
"No, we're about done. Hey, you boys mind if Snafu tags along tonight?" Burgie had mentioned Snafu before, but Eugene had yet to meet him. Apparently he had worked at E.J.'s even longer than Burgie, but was relegated to the back for reasons Burgie had yet to divulge.  
"Strength in numbers," Sid said. "What're we doing, anyways?"  
"Let's just keep it quiet tonight, huh? Got a long drive home tomorrow." Burgie wrung the mop out and snapped it into place along the bucket. "Beer and some games?" They both agreed, and Burgie turned towards the kitchen. "Snaf, you ready to lock up?"  
"Been ready," a voice answered. Snafu appeared in the kitchen door, clicking the light off behind him. He flicked a dismissive glance towards Eugene and Sid, then turned away, moving towards the coat rack. "These the rich boys you been running around with?"  
"Yep," Burgie said, shrugging apologetically to Sid and Eugene. "Let me dump this bucket, and we'll head out." He disappeared down the back hall and Snafu turned towards them, looking them over as he pulled on a jacket that seemed far too thin for the cold that had descended on the city.   
Eugene didn't like him. It was disconcerting, how much he disliked him, and how quickly. He was rude, for one thing, but that wasn't it. It was the expression in his eyes as he stared at them, like he'd summed them up in one glance and didn't find anything worthwhile. He found himself shifting closer to Sid, uncomfortable and irritated.   
"Alabama, right?" Snafu asked. His tone made it clear he couldn't care less. "Which one of you boys've got the teacher for a daddy?"  
"That'd be me," Sid said. Snafu's gaze slid over to Eugene.  
"And yours is the doctor." He was handsome. Something more than handsome. It somehow made Eugene dislike him more.   
"Nice to meet you," he said flatly. Snafu curled his lip at him in a mockery of a smile.  
"Sorry, Burge," he said, raising his voice and calling over his shoulder without looking away from Eugene. "Can't do it. Got something I gotta get to."  
"Don't be an ass, Snafu," Burgie said, reappearing in the hallway. Eugene watched annoyance flit briefly across Snafu's face, quickly covered by that same disdainful smirk.   
"Got shit to do, what you want from me?" He stepped past Eugene, heading towards the door. "See you when you get back in."  
"Take care of yourself," Burgie said, and Snafu grunted in reply as he ducked out the door. "Sorry about that," he said to Sid and Eugene. "He's a good guy, once you get to know him."  
"We'll take your word for it," Sid said, and the three of them walked the two blocks to Burgie's apartment and Eugene didn't think about Snafu again except to feel relieved that he hadn't had to spend the night with the surly bastard.  
But Snafu, it turned out, was one of Burgie's closest friends, and Burgie was nothing if not loyal. Eugene was disconcerted by how much time he ended up spending in the man's company the following semester. Snafu didn't grow on him, and Eugene was sure by the way Snafu either ignored or ruthlessly baited him that the feeling was mutual. But his mother had taught him to be polite, and his father had tried to teach him patience, and so Eugene continued to bite his tongue.  
He learned a thing or two about him, despite his best efforts to the contrary. Learned that he worked with a welder in addition to his job at the cafe. Learned that the cafe's owner, Eddie, rarely allowed him out of the kitchen because he made too much trouble waiting tables, had even gotten himself slapped once. Learned that he could be surprisingly funny and charming, when he felt like it. He certainly never felt like charming Eugene.   
That second semester passed as quickly as the first, and Eugene eventually chained himself to his desk, forced himself to focus on studying for his finals. He managed to ignore his phone for a full week, but by the time Friday evening rolled around he'd had enough. He picked it up, sent a message to Burgie.  
_free tonight? >>>_  
_> >> I will be later_  
_> >> snafu's got a show_  
_??? >>>_  
_> >> art show_  
_> >> for his sculptures and other stuff_  
Eugene stared down at his phone. Now that he thought back, he did remember Burgie mentioning once or twice that Snafu liked to work metal in his free time, had created some interesting pieces. Eugene hadn't thought much of it. But apparently it was something more than a hobby.  
_> >> you should stop by _  
_> >> nothing fancy, snaf wouldn't go for it if we tried something like that. eddie makes a couple things. we turn the cafe into an exhibit for the night. _  
_think i might. sounds interesting >>>_  
What were you supposed to wear to an art show held at a restaurant, featuring metalwork by a part-time welder? Eugene eventually settled on a light sweater and slacks. It would be something different, he could count on that. He'd never been to an art show before, but didn't see this one resembling the image that came to his mind, of people murmuring behind fluted glasses, the women in heels and the men in sharp suits, trading words like 'liminal spaces' and 'subverting the tradition.'   
He hadn't known what to expect, but he was still surprised when he walked in and saw how many people were milling around the cafe. The tables and chairs had vanished, and the whole space had been given over to, to...  
Eugene stopped in front of the sculpture sitting in the middle of the room. It was big, nearly as tall as him, and it didn't make any sense. He stared at it, tried to trace the motion it seemed to be conveying.  
"Striking, isn't it?" He turned to see that a man had come to stand beside him. He had one of the cafe's mismatched mugs in one hand, a spoon sticking out the top. "I went straight for it when I walked in as well. I suppose that was the intention. Do you know the artist?"  
"Artist?" Eugene repeated dumbly. He looked back at the sculpture. God, Snafu was an artist. Snafu had made this. "Not very well," he said after a moment's pause.  
"He has quite the range. I haven't found an apartment yet, but I'm tempted to," The man cut himself off with a laugh. "Getting ahead of myself." He looked at Eugene. "What's your impression of it?"  
It was the sort of open-ended question that Eugene usually dreaded, especially in settings like this. But the man seemed genuine enough. Eugene took his time answering, looking the sculpture over carefully. "It's a circle that's falling apart. Falling in on itself." He didn't like it, he decided. It felt too despairing.  
"Hmm," the man said. "Or perhaps it's just beginning to form." Eugene watched him stick the spoon in his mouth as he stared thoughtfully at the sculpture. His eyes widened slightly. "My God, this is delicious. What is this?"  
Eugene peered into his mug. "Looks like Eddie's pawpaw ice cream. He owns this place."  
"Another artist," the man said wryly. He smiled at Eugene. "I'll have to take a closer look at the food they have on offer. It was nice speaking with you. Have a good night."  
"You too." Eugene watched him walk off, then glanced to the side, following a sudden prickling feeling that told him he was being observed. Snafu was standing there, not talking to anybody, which seemed a little strange to Eugene seeing as it was his art show. He was watching Eugene with his typical hooded expression. Eugene nodded to him, then turned away, feeling odd. It was strangely intimate, seeing slices of a person's inner workings displayed all around a room. He stopped in front of another one, a mask of some sort. It was grotesque, but hadn't been so highly stylized as to lose its very human features. You couldn't pretend you were looking at anything else besides a human face. Was it supposed to be Snafu? There was something about the hard, over-exaggerated jaw and cheekbone lines that made him think it was. But it was all wrong. He moved on.  
There were probably only about ten pieces all told, but they were so vastly different one from another that Eugene found himself engrossed, moving slowly around the room. The smallest one was scarcely bigger than his hand, a tangle of wires, wrapping with increasing density around a central absence. This one had some color to it, faint twists of gold interspersed with the flat gray. Eugene leaned closer, then pulled back when someone came up beside him. It was Snafu; he leaned in and peered down at the small sculpture too, mouth twisted in a mocking smirk.   
"Lose something in there?" He said.  
"You're good," Eugene blurted out. Snafu blinked. "All this. I didn't know you did stuff like this."  
"Just something to do to make a little cash," Snafu said after a moment. "Nothing to get excited about." It was so patently untrue that Eugene could only stare at him incredulously. If it was only about money he could have just forged some of those iron roses, sold them at a craft fair or farmer's market. This was something else entirely. Snafu shifted his weight, tapped his hands together at the level of his waist. He was fidgeting, Eugene realized. He was uncomfortable.  
"How long have you been making sculptures?" He asked, taking a step back and looking around the room. Snafu grunted.  
"I dunno, maybe five, six years. Started out just fiddling around with scrap iron left around the shop. Then Pops told me I could use the forge whenever I liked, so long as I paid for my own material. All my early stuff was shit. But one day Eddie came by to see the place, saw some of the stuff I made. Whole thing was his idea. This is the second year he's set this up. Turnout sure is better than the last time."  
"Well, he knew what he was doing," Eugene said with a huff of laughter. Snafu was watching him with fixed, owlish eyes. This was by far the longest they had gone without sneering or glaring at each other, it was starting to make Eugene feel muddled.   
"It's official, Snafu," Burgie said, appearing suddenly beside them and startling Eugene. "You're taking us out for drinks tonight." Snafu's eyes slid over to him, he lifted a brow. Burgie gestured over his shoulder. "That man talking to Eddie just bought the centerpiece." Eugene looked past Burgie and saw the man who he had spoken to earlier. He was talking to Eddie, gesturing with his hand. "Some new professor. Eddie gave him the society price and he didn't even blink."  
"One born every minute," Snafu drawled. But his eyes were bright. "Sure, I'll take you boys out."  
"I'm gonna get a hold of Flo, see if she wants to come along," Burgie said, and stepped away.  
"Didn't say nothing about Flo," Snafu called after him, then turned back to Eugene. He was fighting against a grin. "Fuck. I'm flush, Sledge." He jammed his hands in his pockets and looked down and to the side, a smile breaking free and tugging its way across his face.   
"Congratulations," Eugene said. "You deserve it." Snafu gave him a sly glance from under heavy lidded eyes.   
"You like it?"  
There was something about the way he said it, open, like he actually cared what Eugene thought, that made Eugene pause and consider his words carefully before answering. "I don't know if like is the right word," he said slowly, looking around the room. "They're absorbing. Pull you in and leave you feeling off when they let you go again. Like this one," and he gestured to the small sculpture they were still standing in front of. "It should make you feel hollow, you know? All those strands reaching for something that ain't there. But it don't feel that way." He leaned closer. "Maybe it's that other color you got shooting through it. What is that?" He looked up, met Snafu's eyes.  
"Bronze," he answered, low voiced. "I ain't working with that shit again. Not worth it. You gotta polish it all the damn time to keep the shine on."  
"Well, maybe it's worth the effort," Eugene said stubbornly. Snafu looked at the sculpture.  
"You want it?" He said, tone carefully offhand. He didn't look at Eugene.  
"No," Eugene said quickly, shocked. "I mean. Yes. But no. I can't afford it." Snafu rolled his eyes.  
"I'm talking about giving it to you."   
"Snafu," Eugene said firmly, and Snafu looked back at him. "Someone will pay you to own this. You don't gotta give it away." He felt all of a sudden like they were standing too close together, even though there was at least a foot in between them.   
"You like it?" Snafu asked again, staring at him, a wide gaze that Eugene couldn't seem to break away from. Eugene stared back, something rising up in his chest. He felt himself starting to smile.  
"Yeah," he said, lifting a hand to his chin to try and rub away the grin. "I do." Snafu grinned back, surprisingly sweet. He picked up the sculpture and shoved it into Eugene'e chest.  
Eugene only saw Snafu one other time before heading back to Mobile for the summer, and Snafu still found several things to mock him over. But there was a different quality to it, light instead of digging, a smirk without its usual hard edge. Back home, Eugene passed the summer largely outdoors. He liked the city but missed the countryside, always. Sid had disappeared into Mary, which was how it had been nearly every summer since high school, and Eugene was used to keeping his own company. He went camping, hiking, kayaking. He bird-watched and stargazed and read.   
He and Sid stayed in communication with Burgie and Flo all that summer. They had been throwing the idea of renting together back and forth since the spring, and Burgie ended up heading back a couple weeks before the fall semester to find a place. Eugene and Sid followed a week later, driving up in Sid's old Chevy. The address Burgie gave them brought them to a two story brick building, obviously old, the once-white paint of the window frames flaking and grayish. The front door was hanging open.  
They walked in to find Burgie and Snafu sitting on a couch in the middle of a room devoid of any other furniture, save an empty entertainment center. There was a six pack of beer on the cushion in between them. "Two left," Burgie said when they walked in. He grabbed the remaining two bottles and held them out towards them.   
"Don't mind if I do," Sid said, taking them both and handing one off to Eugene. He twisted it open and looked around the room. "Place is nicer on the inside than it looks from the street."  
"S'got character," Snafu pronounced. "Ain't that what the lady said, Burge? Character."  
"We're gonna need to find a couple more roommates," Burgie said, ignoring Snafu. "You know anybody looking?"  
"You're not interested?" Eugene asked Snafu.   
"Hell no," he answered. "Like where I'm at just fine." Snafu lived, from what Eugene understood, in an old garage that had been converted into a studio apartment. It didn't sound like any kind of place to get attached to, but maybe he enjoyed the solitude. Eugene could understand that.  
"I might know a guy," he said. "He's been complaining about his roommates for about a year now." They were pursuing similar majors, so he and Jay had classes together often. "He's a good guy. I'll get a hold of him, see if he's interested."  
Burgie nodded and tipped his head back to finish his beer. "You boys hungry? I'm heading over to that Greek place down the road a piece."  
"Vassili's?" Sid plunked his half finished beer down on the entertainment center. "Hell yes."  
"What about you, Sledge?"  
"I'll pass. Wanna claim my room, start unpacking."  
"The best rooms are upstairs. Flo and I got the back one." Eugene followed them out the door and started bringing in his and Sid's suitcases. He left them piled by the couch and sipped his beer as he walked around the house, explored the sparsely furnished rooms. It did have character, no matter how mockingly Snafu had used the term. The ceilings were high, echoing the sound of his footsteps back to him. The windows and doorways were framed in dark wood, and there were wooden shutters along all the bigger windows instead of blinds. He inspected the two remaining upstairs rooms carefully, and eventually chose the one overlooking the street. It was the smaller room, but the view was nice. It was empty aside from a small dresser and a twin-sized bed frame with a bare mattress. He would have to get a hold of a desk. And some sheets. And a couple of chairs. He opened his first suitcase, started transferring his clothes to the dresser drawers.  
"You not separating your socks and underwear?" Eugene startled and turned to find Snafu standing in his doorway. "You're a wild man, Sledge."  
"Gonna have to get you a damn bell," Eugene said, turning back to his clothes. "You didn't go to the restaurant?"  
"I'm standing here, ain't I?" Snafu said in answer. Eugene huffed a breath and shook his head. "What you been doing all summer? You're all over freckles."  
"No I'm not," Eugene said immediately, annoyed. He lifted a self conscious hand to rub along the back of his neck, where he knew his freckles tended to pop up most intensely. He really didn't freckle much, despite his coloring, and anyways he used sunscreen.  
"Been out in the sun," Snafu insisted.  
"Well, yeah." He closed his empty suitcase and dragged it to the closet. "I like being outdoors. Did some camping, kayaking. What about you?" He glanced over at Snafu as he went to his second case, this one mostly odds and ends that he hadn't been able to fit into the first one.  
"I worked, Sledge, we ain't all southern belles like you and Phillips." Eugene snorted and grinned at him. Snafu smirked back. "Went fishing with Eddie and Pops, one weekend."  
"Can't believe Eddie was willing to take the time away from the cafe." Everyone knew Eddie practically lived at the restaurant, gave nearly all his time to running the place.  
"You'd be surprised. Man's been acting fucking weird lately. I think he's gone and found himself a boyfriend." Eugene hummed in response. "You brought that along with you?" Snafu's voice had changed, dropped down in pitch. Eugene frowned over at him in confusion, then looked down at his suitcase. Snafu's bronze and iron sculpture was sitting on top, padded with a couple of t-shirts.   
"Yeah, of course." He picked it up and looked over at Snafu. "I told you I liked it. Figured there was no point in leaving it at home, sitting in an empty room." He went over to the dresser and set the sculpture on top. The thud of the door closing had him looking back over, just in time to lock eyes with Snafu as he turned around to face him. "What." He trailed off as Snafu crossed the room towards him, moving in close. Eugene gulped and turned, and Snafu crowded into his space until Eugene found his spine pressed against the dresser, head pulling back and hands flattened against the drawers. "What're you doing?" Like he didn't know, like he hadn't felt a shot of heat ping through his stomach and straight to his groin the minute he'd seen Snafu standing in the doorway.  
"This one's new," Snafu muttered. He lifted a hand and touched a spot along Eugene's jaw. "I know it. Woulda noticed it, if it had been there before."  
"What?" Eugene's heart was hammering away in his chest. His breath was caught and tangled somewhere in that region, too. He forced himself to breathe out, back in.   
"This freckle, Eugene." God, he liked hearing Snafu saying his name, how he drew the word out into one soft, extended sound. "Bet you got more than you think. Hell. You got another one right here." He trailed his finger up and tapped a spot on Eugene's cheek. His other hand had somehow insinuated itself between Eugene's arm and torso, was braced against the dresser. He moved in even closer, until their bodies were just brushing. He looked at Eugene and waited.  
There wasn't any point in pretending at surprise, Eugene decided. He'd always thought Snafu was strangely attractive, oddly beautiful even, and he knew they'd both felt that spark light up and catch flame, the night of Snafu's show. It had been a growing thought in the back of Eugene's mind all summer, one he'd tried to ignore. Apparently Snafu had been thinking on it, too. He lowered his head slowly, watching Snafu as he went for any sign that he should stop, but Snafu just tilted his head and licked his top lip. Jesus Christ. Eugene kissed there first, a needy hum vibrating through him the moment their lips touched. It had been an embarrassingly long time since he'd been with anyone, but he had the feeling that Snafu would be overwhelming no matter how long the gap between men. He tasted like beer and the tang of iron, or maybe that was just Eugene's imagination. Snafu made a soft, pleased sound low in his throat and pressed more firmly against Eugene, and Eugene shifted down, letting their mouths slide fully together.   
Snafu's hand moved from off the dresser to grip Eugene along his ribs, the other one still cupping the side of his face. Eugene wrapped one arm around Snafu's back and settled the other on his hip and just gave himself over to it. He leaned back against the dresser, let it and Snafu's hard, slender weight hold him up and devoted all his attention to kissing him. From the muffled groans and hums Snafu was making, he figured he was doing well enough. It wasn't long before he was tugging at Snafu's shirt, fumbling at his jean buttons.  
"Fuck," Snafu said, breaking their mouths apart. "C'mere." He pulled Eugene towards the bed and they tumbled together onto the bare mattress. Snafu shucked his clothes in record time, then roughly helped Eugene out of his. Eugene only had a moment to admire the sight of Snafu's wiry lean body, and then Snafu was laying back and pulling Eugene after him. Eugene kissed him again, and Snafu hooked his leg around Eugene's ass and canted his hips up, sliding his cock against Eugene's. Eugene gasped and sucked Snafu's top lip into his mouth, starting to go feverish with need. The air was still and heavy, and Eugene could feel the heat pooling beneath his skin. "What do you want, boo?" Snafu asked, pulling his mouth away and rolling his hips against Eugene again.   
"God, don't ask me that," Eugene said, dropping open kisses along Snafu's jaw. "Anything." Everything. "What do you want?" Snafu grabbed him by his hair and clamped their mouths together again, parting his lips and inviting Eugene in.   
"Want a list?" he said when they pulled apart again. "Wanna watch you come. Blow you. Want you to fuck me."  
"Christ," Eugene said shakily. He reached between their bodies and wrapped his fingers around Snafu, making him groan and rock against his hand. "I didn't bring anything."  
"S'alright." Snafu threw his head back and humped against Eugene's hold on him a couple of times, then pushed against his shoulder. "Get on your side." Eugene did as he was told and Snafu shuffled along the mattress until he was laying on his side too, in the opposite direction of Eugene. He scooted closer, and Eugene put a hand around his hips to pull him in towards him. He was shocked, in some distant part of his mind. He wasn't inexperienced, but he had somehow never done this before. Snafu wrapped one hand around the base of his cock, then leaned up on his elbow, grinning down the length of their bodies at him. "Bet I can make you come first."   
Eugene glared at him. "You're on," he said, and sunk his mouth down on Snafu, tightening all over with pleasure when Snafu cursed in surprise and bucked against him.  
In the end, Snafu won. Afterwards, they redressed and sat side by side on the edge of the mattress. Eugene didn't know what came next, was watching Snafu for some indication of where his head was at, but Snafu was quiet, fidgety. "I'd been thinking about that for a while now," Eugene said finally. Snafu grunted, gave him a sideways smile.  
"Yeah? Me too. Obviously." He tapped his hands against his knees. "Should do it again."  
"Definitely," Eugene said, probably too quickly. Snafu smirked and looked away. "I don't have your number."  
"Gimme your phone," Snafu said, and Eugene scooped it up from where it had landed on the floor and handed it over to him.  
"You know, I don't know your name either. How is that possible? We've known each other almost a year."  
"Never asked, did you?" Snafu finished tapping in his number and handed the phone back to Eugene. "It's Merriell."  
"Merriell. Huh. I like it." He smiled at him, and Snafu smiled back briefly, then stood up.   
"I'm gonna have a quick smoke. You wanna come along?"  
"I'll finish unpacking," Eugene said. He hated the smell of cigarettes, although he hadn't minded the way it stuck faintly to Snafu's flesh, oddly enough. He followed Snafu to the door and watched him disappear down the stairs before turning back to his room. He looked at the sculpture sitting on top of the dresser and felt a wide, stupid smile take over his face.  
Sid and Burgie returned a little later with another six-pack in tow, and the four of them reconvened in the living room. Eugene thought about sitting next to Snafu, but stretched out on the floor instead, leaning back against the bricked off fireplace.  
"What'd you boys do while we were gone?" Burgie asked as he passed the beers around. Eugene and Snafu glanced at each other.  
"Nothing," Snafu said with a dismissive shrug of his shoulder. "Sledge unpacked, I almost fell asleep on the stoop waiting on you to get back with the damn beers."  
"You could of gone yourself," Sid said, and he and Snafu started bickering, and Eugene turned his attention to his drink. So Snafu wanted to keep it between them. That was alright, and what would they have said, anyways? _We made out against my dresser and then sucked each other off on the bed._ No, there was nothing wrong with wanting to take things slow, keep it quiet. Besides, Eugene wasn't looking for anything serious. Maybe Snafu wasn't either. Maybe it was just sex, would remain just sex. He took a long, deep draw from the bottle. That was fine. Fine.  
Eugene started to feel like he was living two lives, that second year. In the first life, he stayed busy with classes and spent his free time hanging out with his roommates. Jay had jumped on the chance to move in with them, and had slid easily into the group. It was the same with their second roommate, another college student named Bill that Florence had met in class and convinced to move in with them. With six people living together, the house was always busy with comings and goings, and Snafu was there more often than not. They were friends, but only within the context of the group.   
In his second life, Eugene felt a thrill of anticipation every time he looked at his phone and saw a message from Snafu. They were hardly ever more than two words, an unadorned _free tonight?_ or a blunt _u up?_ , but he received them regularly, and he always said yes. In his second life, Snafu sometimes managed to sneak his way into his room but more often than not Eugene went to his place, it was just easier that way. Snafu would close the door behind him, his hands already snaking their way around his waist, their mouths latching together, and Eugene would be gone, lost. They usually went their separate ways fairly quickly, after, neither one wanting to pretend that it was anything other than fucking. But sometimes Snafu would drop his head against Eugene's shoulder and keep it there, would breathe deep and slow and let Eugene run his hands along his back, his hair. It was embarrassing, but Eugene sometimes thought he enjoyed those rare moments even more than the sex, which was, frankly, incredible.   
In his first life, Eugene waved off Florence's attempts to set him up with other students she thought he might like, laughed away Jay and Bill's ribbing about his lack of game. "Eugene's already sown those oats," Sid said once, as they walked home together from the bar they had stopped in at. He nudged Eugene with his shoulder. "Go on, tell 'em about your wild year fucking your way across the United States."  
"Jesus, Sid. That is not what happened," Eugene said, raising his voice to speak over the gleeful shouts of his friends.  
"Yeah, you fucked your way up into Canada too, didn't you?" Sid said, and Jay and Bill howled with laughter and Eugene gave up.  
"You really travel for a year?" Snafu asked him, in his second life, the following night as they lingered in bed together. Eugene was laying on his stomach, and Snafu was on his side next to him, his fingers digging idly into Eugene's back, making Eugene want to groan out loud with pleasure.  
"Yes. Don't listen to Sid. He just likes to give me a hard time."  
"Didn't get any ass?" Snafu said, his hand traveling down to pinch Eugene's cheek.  
"Well. Got more that year than I had any year before it, which was zero. But it's not like I was picking up men at truck stops like Sid makes it sound."  
"How old were you?"   
"Nineteen. Twenty. It was the year before I started here."  
Snafu tsked. "Boo. You telling me you didn't have sex 'til you were nineteen years old?" Eugene grimaced, turned his face away.  
"Twenty, actually. I was a late bloomer, I guess. It's not like I never messed around, I just never felt ready for," he shrugged. "That. I don't know why." Snafu leaned into him and kissed him, soft and affectionate, the angle awkward. Eugene felt his heart clench tight in his chest, then loosen.   
"Why'd you do it? Travel."   
"I dunno." Eugene rolled onto his back, dared to take Snafu's hand and pull it against his chest. "I didn't go straight to college right after high school. Spent that first year at home, driving my folks mad. They wanted me to go to medical school, and I had thought I wanted that too, but then," he trailed off, lifted his free hand. "I didn't. A whole year goes by, Sid goes off to college, and I'm still wandering around the house with no idea what I should do next. It sounds ridiculous, I know." He glanced at Snafu, but there wasn't even the hint of a sneer on his face. "One day I just decided I needed to do something, anything. So I cleaned out my savings, packed a couple of bags and just went. My folks were livid. But I'm glad I did it. It's not like I had any big realizations about anything. But I got a little appreciation for how big the world is. And I learned that I liked my own company. That's important, you know?" Snafu grunted thoughtfully and kissed him again, a deep, melting kind of kiss that had Eugene winding his hand up into his curls, his other hand still holding Snafu's palm against his heart.  
"I gotta get to sleep," Snafu said, when he finally pulled away. He dropped down beside Eugene and tugged his hand free.   
_Can I stay?_ Eugene almost asked. He didn't want the moment to end, the illusion of intimacy that they were wrapped up in. He studied Snafu's face in the dim light, but he was as unreadable as ever. "I'll get going," he said instead.  
Eugene could hardly believe he'd managed it, as he dragged his suitcases downstairs to load them into the car. Couldn't believe he'd gotten through two semesters lying by omission to his friends, keeping a secret of this magnitude from Sid. Everyone was heading home again for the summer. Sid was still in the kitchen scarfing down breakfast, so Eugene started taking their luggage out to the car. He frowned in surprise when he came across Snafu sitting on the front porch smoking. It was far earlier in the day than he usually showed up.  
"Heading out?" Snafu asked, craning his neck to peer up at him, shading his eyes against the sun.  
"Yeah, as soon as Sid finishes breakfast." Eugene walked past him towards the car, tossing the suitcases in the trunk. "What're you doing here so early?"  
"Got news. It's important." Snafu stood up and came to stand beside Eugene. He leaned in. "Eddie's fucking a university professor." Eugene blinked, then huffed a laugh. It had been an ongoing argument between Snafu and Burgie, with Snafu insisting that Eddie was seeing someone and Burgie denying it. For some reason neither one had been willing to just outright ask the man. "I'm serious. Caught them in the act."  
"What?" Eugene said, scandalized.  
"Not in that act, settle your damn feathers. Walked in on 'em necking in Eddie's office." He grinned, bit his bottom lip. "I'm gonna tell Burgie, try and ruin his day."  
"Why would it ruin his day to find out that Eddie's seeing someone?"  
Snafu shrugged. "The man hates to be wrong, that's all." He leaned against the side of the car, and Eugene settled in beside him, watching him thoughtfully. He wondered if this was the beginning of the end for them, for whatever this was between them. Burgie had graduated, after all, had a job lined up in Texas where he could be closer to his family. He would be coming back regularly to visit Florence, but it wouldn't be the same. Eugene knew Burgie was Snafu's closest friend. If he wasn't around anymore, Snafu might not be either.  
"Can I text you?" He asked baldly. Snafu gave him a startled glance. "Over the summer, I mean." He felt suddenly dizzy, his two lives moving close together, standing lined up one behind the other. But he didn't want it to end. Snafu cast an uneasy glance towards the door, then looked back at Eugene.  
"Sure," he said slowly. He cleared his throat and shifted his weight against the car. "That'd be alright."  
"Alright, then," Eugene said, clumsy. Sid appeared in the doorway, shouting something backwards into the house. "Guess I gotta go."  
"See ya," Snafu said, pushing off the car, still watching Eugene.  
"Couple of months," Eugene answered, pulling up a weak smile. Snafu nodded at him, that fixed, assessing gaze of his, and then turned and headed towards the house.  
Snafu ended up messaging Eugene first, roughly two weeks later. It was a blurry picture of Eddie grinning over at a man, their arms wrapped around each other's waists. They were walking out of the back door of Eddie's restaurant; Eugene could see the faint outline of Snafu's phone and face superimposed over the picture from where he'd taken it through a car window. He stared down at the picture in amusement, and then another message from Snafu popped up.  
_> >>what'd i fucking tell u_  
_I believed you, you know. Are you stalking them? >>>_  
_> >>not my fault they're being careless af_  
Eugene laughed to himself, then studied the man Eddie was with. He knew him, he realized with a jolt of surprise.  
_you know who that is, right? >>>_  
_that's the man that bought your big sculpture last year >>>_  
_> >>shit, you're right_  
_> >>get it jones_  
Eugene chuckled again, then put his phone away. He didn't think over it much after that, except to be pleased that Snafu had texted him. But late that night, his phone went off again.  
_> >>u up?_  
_yeah >>>_  
_> >>u think that guy bought that sculpture to get into eddie's pants?_  
Eugene stared down at his phone for a long moment, surprised.  
_no >>>_  
_if he bought it to try and get into someone's pants, it would have been yours, right? >>>_  
_you didn't hear the way he talked about. he really liked it. i don't think he even had a place to live yet, but he still bought it >>>_  
He waited for what felt like ages, but was really only ten minutes or so. Finally Snafu replied.  
_> >>night eugene_  
Eugene would have given anything to be able to touch Snafu in that moment. He laid his phone on his nightstand and slid between his sheets, frowning as he thought hard over this new piece of evidence that Snafu could be so easily thrown off balance, that his work was important to him. That he had felt vulnerable and had chosen to trust Eugene with it. The thoughts filled him up with a restless energy, but he fought against it and stayed in his bed.  
They didn't message each other often, but Eugene figured it was still more than what they'd had before. Once, about halfway through the summer, Snafu sent Eugene another picture. It was a sculpture, a big one, huge golden cresting points like waves reaching upwards. It was beautiful, more daringly, assuredly beautiful than any of Snafu's other pieces that Eugene had seen. He was still admiring it when another message came through.  
_> >>back to fucking around with bronze again_  
_merriell >>>_  
_it's amazing >>>_  
Snafu didn't answer, but that was alright.  
Mid-July, Eugene loaded his car up with camping supplies and said his goodbyes to his parents. He hesitated outside the house, tapping his fingers along the hood of his car, and then gave in, pulled out his phone and called Snafu.   
"Hello?" Snafu sounded as flustered as Eugene felt.  
"Hey, Snaf. How've you been?"  
"Just fine, Sledge," Snafu said after a long pause. "Working." Eugene could hear the sound of traffic in the background.  
"That's good," Eugene said, then grimaced and knocked his fist against his head. God, he was an idiot. "Um. Listen, I just wanted to call to let you know, you probably won't be able to reach me for the next few weeks. I'm heading out this morning to go camping, and there's hardly any service."  
"Shit, how am I gonna make it?" Snafu asked mockingly. Eugene could picture his mean sneer perfectly.   
"Yeah, I know," he said, trying to not sound defensive. "I just didn't want." He cut himself off. "Anyways, I guess I'll be seeing you soon enough, huh? Less than a month."  
"Yeah," Snafu said in answer. Eugene waited for him to say something else, but he stayed quiet.  
"Well, I gotta get going. Good talking to you." Like hell it was.  
"Gene, hold up." Eugene waited, listened to the sound of traffic fall away, like Snafu had stepped inside somewhere. "Hey."  
"Hey."  
"S'nice, that you called me. Thanks. Have fun getting eaten alive by bugs."  
_I'll eat you alive_ , Eugene thought, wanting him suddenly, needing him. "I will," he said instead with a laugh. "Bye, Snafu."  
They didn't talk or message each other again after that, and three weeks later Sid was pulling the car to a stop in front of the house. Snafu was sitting on the front porch with Bill and Jay, and Eugene felt a frisson of pure lust shiver across his skin at the sight of him.  
"Hail, hail, the gang's all here," Jay sang out as he and Sid climbed out of the car. "Flo's making us a welcome back dinner."  
"Is Sid here?" Florence asked, sticking her head out the door. "Sid, thank God. These blokes," and she gestured to Bill and Jay, "are useless in the kitchen, and this one," and she gestured to Snafu, "refuses to help me."  
"You walked yourself into this mess, Risely, you can walk yourself right back out of it," Snafu said dismissively, watching Eugene. Florence huffed and turned back to Sid.  
"C'mon, have a heart," she said pleadingly.  
"I just drove ten hours straight," Sid griped, but he handed his suitcase off to Eugene and followed Florence into the house. Eugene followed after them, lugging the suitcases.  
"Need a hand, Sledge?" Snafu offered, standing up and dropping his cigarette.  
"How d'you like that?" Bill said, nudging Jay. "Man refuses to make us dinner, but Eugene he helps."  
"You two ain't cute enough," Snafu said, winking at Eugene as they laughed. Eugene almost tripped on nothing. Snafu took one of the suitcases and the two of them walked upstairs together.  
"What was that?" Eugene asked. Snafu looked up at him, an intent, surprisingly hard look.  
"Don't worry," he said. "They don't know nothing." That hadn't been what Eugene meant, but he couldn't put into words what exactly it was he had been trying to ask, so he left it alone. Snafu tossed Sid's suitcase carelessly into his room, then followed Eugene down the hall to his. Eugene closed the door behind them and dropped his case. He and Snafu stood facing each other in front of the door.  
"I've been thinking about touching you the whole drive up here," Eugene said without preamble. Snafu grinned slyly and hooked a finger into the band of Eugene's pants.  
"Must of been a fucking uncomfortable car ride for Phillips." Eugene took that as permission to get closer, settling his hands on Snafu's sides and squeezing gently. Snafu leaned into him, swaying forward and dropping his head down against Eugene's shoulder. "Missed this," he said grudgingly.  
"Yeah?" Eugene said. He pulled him flush against him and dipped his head to bite lightly along the base of his neck. "I did too." They didn't speak again, didn't look at each other, just stood close together and breathed. Eugene felt himself drawing tighter, winding up, just from the feel of Snafu against him, the way he was slowly mouthing his way along his shoulder. He felt heady with it, with how Snafu was leaning against him, with the thick sweetness that seemed to be filling the air around them. He stroked a slow hand up along Snafu's spine. "Can I come by your place tonight?" Snafu gave a tug of his hand, still curled around Eugene's waistband, so that their hips pressed tightly together for just a moment.  
"Guess I'd let you in," he muttered against Eugene's shoulder. Eugene kissed the corner of his mouth and they pulled away, disentangled themselves.  
They picked up where they left off, or they mostly did. They still didn't tell their friends, didn't touch each other in public, but Snafu started to plop himself down beside Eugene on the couch, or at the table or bar when they went out together. He started making little comments too, small observations, remarks coy enough that they weren't damning, but could almost be flirtatious. He didn't roll Eugene straight out of the bed anymore either, would settle back against his arm and complain instead, about the cafe or the shop, or anything really. Snafu liked to bitch. Sid started to watch the both of them with a speculative gaze, and Eugene could feel those two lives sitting poised and breathless, wavering on the edge of merging.  
Snafu had another show at E.J.'s near the end of the semester. He only showed six pieces, and he sold every one. Afterwards, Eddie's professor boyfriend showed up with a bottle of champagne. They poured out the drinks and stood together in the kitchen and toasted Snafu's success. Eugene had never seen Snafu smiling so brightly, effulgent from all the goodwill in the room.   
"You didn't show the bronze piece," Eugene said to him, later that night. The next morning, actually. They had lingered past midnight at the cafe, and then Eugene had made a show of going back to the house with everyone else, only to head back out again as soon as the coast was clear. He had shown up at Snafu's around two in the morning, and now gray light was coming in through the window, and Eugene was exhausted from the long night and from multiple rounds of sex. They were laying curled up together like two sweaty, sticky spoons, and Eugene was feeling peaceful, and so damn proud of Snafu.   
"Ain't ready yet," Snafu said, although Eugene knew that the sculpture was complete. He supposed Snafu meant he wasn't ready to show it. "Fuck. I gotta be in the shop in an hour." He scrubbed a hand along his face and moaned. "Fucking hate Saturdays in the shop, all we do is cut metal and restock shit."  
"You ever think about quitting?" Eugene asked. "Maybe having a forge of your own, not having to use Haney's all the time?"  
"No," Snafu answered immediately. He twisted his head around to look at Eugene, then resettled, pillowing his head on his arm. "We got a good thing going, me and Pops." He got quiet, and Eugene pushed his nose in against the back of his neck, closed his eyes. He must have started to drift, because Snafu's voice was startling when he spoke again, unexpectedly. "He's getting old. Don't have any family to speak of."  
Eugene kept his face where it was, pressed up against Snafu's warm skin. He'd known that Snafu was fond of Haney, but he apparently hadn't grasped how important the man actually was to him. Snafu hardly spoke about him except to gripe, and Eugene had yet to meet him. He reached down, gave Snafu's hip a teasing pinch. "Sounds like he's got a little family." Snafu gave a scornful snort and shoved his hand away. But he didn't deny it. "How come he never comes around? Comes to any of your shows?"  
"The man's an asshole, that's why," Snafu said. "Likes to keep to himself."  
"Maybe I can meet him, sometime," Eugene said, feeling courageous. "See the shop where you work."  
"Maybe," Snafu said, voice distant. His hand slipped back to settle along the top of Eugene's thigh. They lay like that for another long moment, and then Snafu sat up. "Gotta shower," he said. His eyes skittered around the room and then came to settle on Eugene. "You wanna come along?"  
"Hmm." God, yes. His mind immediately flashed to what it could be like, Snafu all warm and slicked up with soap, curls flattened black and wet and how the pattering water might swallow up some of the low sounds he made when Eugene did something that especially pleased him. "Better not." He scooched forward and bit him gently on his hip. "You'd be late to the shop."  
"That so?" Snafu drawled. He gave Eugene a shove. "Get moving then." But his tone was light, his smile soft.  
A couple days later, Eugene was sitting in Jay's room, cramming for finals. He had a feeling that he would be passing by the skin of his teeth, this semester. He'd been so wrapped up in his friends and Snafu, and all while his classes started to become more challenging, the subject matter deepening. He had been chiding himself for weeks about prioritizing his classes over everything else, about buckling down and focusing, and yet here he was, the week before finals, cramming furiously.  
His phone flashed with a message on the table beside him, but he ignored it. He had a feeling it was Snafu, and he knew if he read the message he would have to reply, and if he replied it would be with a yes, and he really couldn't, not right now. He turned the phone over, turned back to his textbook.   
"God, I need coffee," Jay said, some time later. "You want some?"  
"Sure," Eugene answered, not looking up from copying Jay's notes. Jay left the room and Eugene tossed his pen down and leaned back in his chair, stretching with a weary groan. Just a few more hours and he would call it quits for the day. He picked his phone up, saw that Snafu had messaged him a couple of times. _u busy?_ , and then an hour or so after that, _thinking about swinging by_ , followed closely with a _want to see you_. Touched, Eugene started to type out a reply, but then Jay walked back into the room with two mugs of coffee, and he put his phone back down on the desk instead. He couldn't, not tonight. He'd have to call Snafu, after, apologize for not responding sooner.  
But he didn't think about Snafu at all, when he finally dragged himself upstairs later that night and tossed himself down into his bed. He fell asleep almost immediately, and didn't remember the messages until he woke up the next morning. "Damn," he muttered to himself, still groggy, sitting up in bed and picking up his phone with fumbling fingers. He called Snafu, but the line just rang and rang and eventually went to a recording saying that the user didn't have voicemail. Of course. He sent a message instead.  
_hey, sorry about last night. finals are killing me >>>_  
_I got some time tonight. are you free? >>>_  
It took him nearly the whole day to start to suspect that Snafu was given him the cold shoulder. They didn't message often, but the man had never gone so long without replying to him before. He sent another message that evening.  
_are you angry? I'm sorry, I just got caught up with studying >>>_  
When, the next day, Snafu still hadn't replied to him, and was clearly avoiding the house, Eugene's temper started to kick in. He sat and stewed on it for another day, then messaged him again.  
_think we're both a little too old to be playing games. I'm sorry about the other night. answer me or don't, you know where to find me if you want to see me >>>_  
He couldn't deal with Snafu and his moods right now, anyway. He only had a couple days left to devote to studying before his finals. Snafu never replied, and Eugene shoved him out of his mind and managed to mostly keep him that way for the next week. It wasn't until his last test was complete, wasn't until he was walking back to the house with Bill and Jay and brown bags full of liquor, that he let himself think about him again. They were having an end of the year house party before everyone started heading home, it was mostly Bill's baby. Eugene was planning on holing up in his room until it was over, but he had agreed to help them pick up supplies. If Snafu was talking to him, Eugene would have tried to go to his place, escape the house altogether. Eugene scowled to himself at the thought; he hadn't been in the best mood before, and he could feel it turning foul.  
People started trickling in, and once it started to get loud enough that Eugene had to shout to be heard, he decided to call it a night. He grabbed one last beer and made for the staircase, tugging at his collar. The front and back doors were wide open, and someone had cranked the heat up in response, but that just made the upstairs stifling. He closed his door behind him and immediately crossed the room to open the window. Now he would have to listen to the sound of people standing around outside, but better that than the cloying heat. He dropped down on his bed with his drink and pulled out his phone. He stared at it, considering whether or not he should try to message Snafu again.  
It was ridiculous, this fight that they were having. If fight was even the word for two grown men who were scarcely in a relationship ignoring each other the way they were. He was heading home in less than a week, surely Snafu wasn't planning on letting this go on that long. But he was stubborn enough to do just that. If Eugene let that happen, if he went home for three weeks with it still hanging between them, what would that mean? He couldn't let that happen. But he wasn't fucking messaging him again, either.   
As if his thoughts had summoned him up, Eugene suddenly heard him. It was just the tail end of a sentence, the sound of his voice drifting up to his window. But it was unmistakably Snafu. Eugene set his beer on the ground and returned to the window, peering out as surreptitiously as any person could when they were sticking their head out of a second story window. There he was, standing in front of the steps with a drink in his hand, talking to Florence and a couple of people Eugene didn't know. The flood of relief was instantaneous, the anger that followed every bit as strong. Eugene clenched his jaw and stormed downstairs.  
Snafu saw him as soon as he came through the door, his eyes heavy-lidded in that way they got when he was feeling pleased with himself. He gave Eugene one of his sneering smiles, the kind that he hadn't leveled at him for more than a year now. "Well, look who's still up," he drawled. "You ain't studying?"  
"You're such a goddamn child," Eugene bit out, moving past the people on the porch. He felt a shot of satisfaction at Snafu's startled look, quickly masked. "I need to talk to you."  
"I'm busy," Snafu said shortly, lifting his drink to his mouth and watching Eugene.  
"Not negotiable, Snafu," Eugene answered grimly. He reached a hand up and set it along the back of Snafu's neck, started steering him inside. Snafu, to his shock, went along with it, let him push him forward into the house. "Excuse me," Eugene said as an afterthought to Florence and her friends, catching a brief flash of Florence's look of delight as he moved past her. He herded Snafu up the stairs and to his room, and it wasn't until he closed the door behind them that Snafu shrugged his hand off, turning to face him and backing away with a cold smirk.  
"Didn't know you had it in you, Sledge. Guess you college boys like to get a little rough, same as the rest of us, huh?"  
"Stop it," Eugene snapped. "What're you trying to do?" Snafu didn't look away, didn't blink. "I don't understand what you're trying to push me to. You don't have to do it, you know. You could just tell me. Christ." He sagged back against his door, suddenly exhausted. "We could just talk about it." They never fucking talked about it.  
"Alright," Snafu said slowly, backing up even more, like he was thinking about bolting. Eugene suddenly realized he was blocking the only exit. "Talk."  
Eugene moved away from the door, went to stand by his bed, and Snafu turned in place, watching him. The iron and bronze statue was visible over his shoulder, sitting in its customary place on Eugene's dresser. Eugene ran a hand through his hair, tried to collect his thoughts. "I don't know what we're doing anymore, Mer. I don't know if I ever understood it, really. It's like I'm not allowed to say anything, like I'm not supposed to - " he threw his hand up, out of words, dropped down onto his bed.  
"You can say what you like," Snafu said after a long, drawn out silence. Eugene looked up at him. "I ain't never tried to stop you from speaking."  
There were several snide retorts he could make to that, but Eugene forced them down. He stared at Snafu, imagined reaching out with both hands and pulling all his lives together into one. "I like you, Merriell," he said, feeling idiotic. "This is important to me."  
Snafu's eyes dropped, he rolled his glass between his palms. Eugene steeled himself against his own sudden urge to go tearing from the room. Finally, finally, Snafu looked back up at him. "I like you, too," he said, mouth twitching up. He looked a little wild around the edges. He looked like he was telling the truth. Eugene felt his own lips start to pull into a smile, and Snafu's stance loosened. He backed up, propped his hip against the sill of the window.  
Then he fell backwards out of it.

* * *

  
"Snaf, put that damn cigarette out," Sid snapped, turning around from the front passenger seat to confront him.  
"Bunch of fucking horseshit." Snafu ignored him, cupping his hands around the cigarette to protect it from the air whooshing in from his open window. "Probably the last smoke of my life, and I can't even enjoy it."  
"For the last time, you ain't dying." Sid turned back around in his seat with a huff. "Might kill you before you make it to the hospital though," he muttered, just loud enough for Snafu to hear.  
"What you say, Phillips?" He said, pushing himself up on his elbow. He was laid out on his stomach across the back seat, a towel draped over the back of his head to try and slow the bleeding. He was supposed to be holding it in place, but had abandoned the effort in favor of his cigarette. The man was impossible, it would take a certain type of stubborn fool to willingly take on the task of looking after him.  
_Guess I'll have to marry him._ Eugene froze, hands clutching at the wheel, as soon as the startling thought swept across his mind. Where had that come from? They had barely even admitted to liking each other, much less...  
He was a hopeless romantic, he supposed, starting to smile despite himself. He couldn't help it, couldn't help how sweetly the thought sat with him. Snafu was the most obstinate man he had ever met, it would take a lifetime to show him, to really show him, what he thought of him, how he made him feel.  
So, maybe he would marry him. That would shut him up. Not anytime soon, of course; he didn't suppose they had any reason to rush things. They had a lot to talk about in between now and then, or Eugene did at least, a lot of things he'd been putting off saying. But someday.  
_I'm gonna marry him_ , Eugene thought to himself, grinning stupidly, fully aware of what an idiot he was. _If he'll have me, I'm gonna fucking marry him._  
"What the hell are you smiling about, Sledge?" Snafu said, openly hostile. "Something about this situation that you find fucking funny? I'll probably never walk again, and you're grinning like a jackass eating briars."   
"Just picturing you laying ass up in bed for the next two weeks," Eugene said. "Least it's a position you're used to." He looked at Snafu in the rear-view mirror, watched him go still, watched his eyes dart back and forth between him and Sid. He could feel Sid staring at him. He didn't care. He watched a slow, crooked grin crawl its way across Snafu's face, turned his attention back to the road.  
"You poor fucking thing," Snafu finally said in answer. "What you gonna do with yourself, with my ass outta commission?"  
"Oh my God," Sid said, sinking down into his seat.  
"We'll figure something out," Eugene answered, risking another glance in the mirror. Snafu was smiling, equal parts insufferable and sweet.  
"That a promise, boo?" He settled himself back down against the seat, one hand going up to shift the towel back in place, the other reaching up to flick his cigarette out the window. Eugene looked away, turning off the exit to the hospital.  
"Yeah, Snafu. It is."  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
